DIY Lip Balm: How To Make Your Own + 3 Lip Balm Recipes To Switch It Up

Jamie Schneider is the Editorial Assistant at mindbodygreen with a B.A. in Organizational Studies and English from the University of Michigan. She's previously written for Coveteur, The Chill Times, and Wyld Skincare.

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April 21, 2020

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In terms of beauty staples, the lip balm is a common desert-island item. One of those products we just can't help but reach for throughout the day. And people tend to fall into one of two camps: You either have a tried-and-true lip balm favorite you'll keep returning to, or you can never seem to find one that hits the spot. If you fall into the latter camp, may we offer you this solution? Make your own! This lip balm recipe is surprisingly simple, and there are tons of formulations you can play with to make something that is perfectly you.

What ingredients do you need?

Whether you're partial to a beachy, coconut lip salve or sugary-sweet balm, you'll first need a base recipe you can layer in your fun variations. The good news? You can find all of these ingredients in your kitchen. Here's what you'll need:

Oil: For lip balms, oils are key. While there's no shortage of options to use, the most common players are olive oil, sunflower oil, coconut oil, and jojoba oil. Each has its own unique benefits: Coconut oil, for one, is a great emollient, and it's high in lauric and linoleic acid (some good-for-you fatty acids). Olive oil, another great emollient, is high in oleic acid (another fatty acid of note), says cosmetic chemist and founder of BeautyStat, Ron Robinson.

Butter: This is what'll give your lip balm its quintessential structure and give your lips the dose of moisture they need. Again, choose your own adventure here: Marisa Plescia, research scientist at clean beauty e-tailer NakedPoppy, suggests shea butter or cocoa butter, as they have an extra-creamy consistency (not to mention some better-for-you antioxidant properties). Robinson agrees: He notes that shea butter, in particular, is high in fatty acids, like oleic and stearic acids.

Wax: You'll need a wax, like beeswax (or candelilla wax or carnauba wax, for vegan options) to harden the lip balm formula and help it withstand some heat; that keeps your lip balm from melting in your back pocket as soon as it gets warm. Be mindful, Plescia says, of the melt point of the wax you choose. Carnauba wax, for example, "has the highest melt point and thus will give you a very hard lip balm if used at high levels," she advises.

Vitamin E: Optional, but recommended. "It's an antioxidant and helps prevent the oils and butters in the lip balm from oxidizing and turning rancid," says Plescia.

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How to make your own lip balm.

Many experts say that assembling all the ingredients is perhaps the most difficult part of the project (as you might not have beeswax or shea butter on hand). But once you have the necessary items, it's a simple three-step process:

Step 1: Add all your ingredients to a double boiler and heat until they're all fully melted together. Be sure to constantly mix the ingredients to avoid burning.

Step 2: Once all your ingredients are uniformly melted, remove them from the heat and keep mixing until the formula cools (you don't need to be too precise and measure the exact temperature, says Plescia. "Just try to pour the lip balm a little cooler than the temperature it melts at.")

Step 3: Once cooled, mix in your vitamin E and other essential oils you choose. Pour your mixture into jars or tins and let cool to room temperature.

For the perfect formula, Plescia recommends measuring by percentages. For example, to make 100 grams of lip balm, she uses 40.3% sunflower oil, 29% olive oil, 4 grams of shea butter, 26.5 grams of beeswax, and 0.2% of vitamin E. If you're just making a small tinful of balm, 2 tbsp. butter, 2 tbsp. oil, 2 tbsp. wax, and ½ tsp. of vitamin E will work, says product formulator and founder of the natural beauty brand Captain Blankenship, Jana Blankenship, and author of the DIY beauty tome Wild Beauty. Feel free to play with the consistency and experiment with ratios to create your desired blend; the great thing about DIY is there's room for trial and error!

In terms of storage, just know that your lip balm may change texture under certain conditions. For example, if your balm is left in the heat, your butters may melt (especially if you use cocoa butter or shea butter). Once it cools, the butters may crystallize, giving your lip balm a grainy texture. But don't fret: "It doesn't affect the integrity of the formula," Blankenship says, so no need to freak out if your balm looks grainy after a few hours in the sun.

Once you have the basics down, feel free to add low levels of essential oils or sweetener to mix up the flavors and make it yours. Here are some fun recipes to play with:

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3 all-natural lip balm recipes.

When it comes to variations of the basic lip balm, essential oils are your friends. Just remember that a little goes a long way, so you want to use them at very low levels: "Don't add any more than 0.2% of your formula," says Plescia. "They can be very strong, and there is a potential for irritation and possible allergen concerns at higher levels."

1.
Orange creamsicle lip balm

The creamsicle Lip Smacker of your childhood, but make it DIY. For this sugary-sweet balm, all you need to do is add 7 drops of sweet orange essential oil and 3 drops of vanilla extract (again, adding the extra ingredients only once you've taken the mixture off the heat). You'll have a rich, syrupy balm that smells like summer.

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2.
Cooling mint lip balm

For a fresh, cooling sensation, add 10 drops of peppermint oil to the mix. Pro tip: Adding peppermint oil might also add a little tingling sensation, says Plescia, making it a great natural lip plumper.

3.
Rosy lip balm

Looking for a hint of color? This recipe has you covered—all you need is alkanet root, a natural dyeing agent that'll give your balm a rich ruby color. You can buy it powdered or in its natural herb form; if you buy the root unpowdered, just add 1 tbsp. to your lip balm mixture while it's heating up on the stove, says Blankenship. Then be sure to strain the mixture before pouring it into your tins (you don't want pieces of herb stuck in there!). If you go the powdered route, just add one1teaspoon of powder to the mixture after you remove from the heat and stir (no need to strain—it'll dissolve when you mix).

The color yields a delicious red, but feel free to play with quantity if you're partial to a rosier shade than a true cherry red. Again, the ball is in your court here.

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The take-away.

When it comes to at-home projects, the DIY lip balm is a great place to get started. Once you have all the ingredients, it's a pretty straightforward process with lots of room for trial and error. Plescia agrees: "Making lip balm is a simple activity to dabble with cosmetic formulation. For example, if the formula is too soft, add more wax. If you do not like the feel of the oil, switch the oil to another one!" Perfect for a DIY first-timer in the market for a baby-smooth pout.